


One last kiss goodbye

by ssc_art



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Ace Klance, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Asexual, Asexual Character, Asexual Keith (Voltron), Asexual Klance, Asexual Lance (Voltron), Asexual Relationship, Biromantic Lance, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Blood, Blood and Injury, Blue Paladin Lance (Voltron), Canon-Typical Violence, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gay Keith, Getting Together, Guitarist Lance (Voltron), Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Keith & Shiro (Voltron) are Adoptive Siblings, M/M, Musician Lance (Voltron), Pining Keith (Voltron), Red Paladin Keith (Voltron), Singer Lance, Smitten Keith (Voltron), They're all in their original lions, because, broganes, sorta - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-20
Updated: 2018-06-20
Packaged: 2019-05-25 15:18:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,102
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14979938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ssc_art/pseuds/ssc_art
Summary: He'd been thinking about Lance. He'd been thinking about Lance Mc-fucking-Clain.He was so screwed.~Keith figures out he has feelings for a certain blue paladin





	One last kiss goodbye

**Author's Note:**

> *yeets this mess at you*

It had been a peaceful week. No Galra attacks and the paladins were all busy doing their own thing. Keith had heard Hunk announce he was going to the kitchen to try out some new ingredients they had recently gotten from the Space Mall. Pidge was probably sneaking around in the air vents or fumbling with her tech thingies. Allura and Shiro were on the bridge discussing important war stuff, and Coran was off doing whatever the fuck he did all day, probably cleaning the castle and inspecting the several devices on the ship.

The only one Keith hadn't seen all day, was Lance. He hadn't been at breakfast, which was unusual. Lance  _never_  skipped breakfast. He always nagged Keith whenever he missed it because he was busy training. "Keith, buddy," he would say, putting his arm around Keith's shoulders. "has no one ever told you breakfast is the most important meal of the day? Besides," he added, a look of disgust on his freckled face. "training so early in the morning is really bad for your skin, I can practically  _see_  all your pores!" And then he would drag him out of the training room to the kitchen and force him to eat a bowl of space goo.

When Keith had mentioned his absence, Hunk had brushed off his words, saying Lance was probably just sleeping in.

"Hunk had to drag him out of bed to get to class on time almost every morning," Pidge added. "That idiot made us late almost every single day." She put down her drink. "Motherfucker," she muttered under her breath, earning her a stern look from Shiro.

Keith hesitantly nodded and went back to scooping green goo into his mouth, the empty seat next to him still bugging him.

When they had all finished, Keith practically ran out of the dining room, body itching, longing to punch someone in the face, so he went to the training room. He didn't bother to change into his armour, opting for just his regular black t-shirt and jeans. He grabbed his bayard and started the training sequence.

The gladiator appeared and Keith readied his sword, balancing on the ball of his feet. The robot was already coming for him, its footsteps lightly echoing around the room. Keith managed to dodge its first attack, immediately throwing one of his own in, swinging his bayard at its legs. The gladiator rolled out of the way, simultaneously wielding its sword in Keith's direction. The latter braced himself for the hit, meaning to block the attack, but instead a pair of dazzling blue eyes appear before his eyes, and he got hit on his chest with a full blow, sending him flying backwards. He landed on his back harshly, the impact pushing all of the air out of his lungs.

Keith gasped, sucking in a gulp of air. He grunted and sat up, picking up his bayard, that had fallen to the ground in his flight. The gladiator was already making its way over to him, and he quickly scrambled to his feet, lifting his sword, ready to meet the gladiator's. He got some hits in at the sides, but he kept getting distracted by a cocky smirk, a blinding smile and messy, brown hair, making him waver in his steps and getting hit by the gladiator's sword again. This time, the travel was to his head, blurring his sight for a few seconds. He cursed at himself - god _damnit_ _, Keith!_  - and ended the training sequence. He barely noticed the robot sliding back into the ground to wherever it went when they weren't training, too busy rubbing his temple, where the weapon had hit him. He wiped the sweat from his forehead, his face bright red and hot. He knew his train session wasn't the only thing to cause that. He blushed when he recalled the images that had gone through his head just now.

He'd been thinking about Lance. He'd been thinking about  _Lance_ _Mc_ -fucking-Clain.

He was so screwed.

That's when Keith remembered that morning, when aforementioned hadn't been at breakfast. He brushed the thought away and bolted out if the room, not even having to think twice, eager to find a certain blue eyed boy.

* * *

 

Keith went to his room first. He knocked on the door, expecting a voice coming from inside to invite him in, but he was met with silence. He debated for a minute, then decided to open the door. Maybe Lance was still asleep, like Hunk and Pidge had suspected. His heart fluttered at the thought of being in Lance's room, but when he entered it, the lights were off and the bed cold.

Disappointed, he made his way over to the kitchen, where he figured Lance might be, since Hunk was there, remembering the announcement he'd made earlier that day. He walked in and saw the big guy covered with yellow flour-like stuff, batter sticking to his hands.

"Oh, hi, Keith," Hunk said with a broad smile when he noticed the latter standing awkwardly in the doorway. "I think I managed to make the space equivalent of cake batter. We're gonna have dessert today!"

He beamed with pride, but Keith only had eye for the counter Lance usually sat on when he watched Hunk cook. It was empty.

"Oh, uh, that's great," he said absentmindedly. "Hey, uh, do you know where Lance is?" He mentally slapped himself on the forehead at his awkwardness.

"Why?" Hunk questioned. "Do you need him for something?"

"No, no," Keith assured him, setting a step back and putting his hands in the air. "I just wondered where he were and I thought you might know?" His voice went higher at the end of his sentence, making it sound like a question.

Hunk put down the batter and thought for a few seconds. "Oh, maybe he's relaxing in the lounge. Try looking over there."

Keith practically sprinted out of the room, yelling a "thanks!" over his shoulder on his way out.

He walked over to the lounge, just to get disappointed again: only Pidge was there, fucking around with some pieces of tech. He asked her if she knew where Lance was and she sighed, adjusting her glasses.

"What did he do this time?"

"Nothing!" Keith cried out, a little too loud. "Uh, I mean, I haven't seen him all day and I was, uh, well-" He cut off his sentence when he saw Pidge's knowing smirk.

"What?"

Her smirk grew. "Nothing."

He looked at her quizically before replying. "I'm guessing you don't know where he is either?"

"Nope," was her response. "Ask Coran, he usually drags him away to help cleaning or something." And she went back to whatever the hell she was doing.

And thus his quest to find Lance was to be continued.

He wandered through the hallways, looking for Coran - and Lance, of course - when he heard an unfamiliar sound coming from a door on the right. Curious, he opened it and stepped inside a small room, around the size of their bedrooms. Keith's eye immediately fell on a bundle of green fabric and long limbs that was curled up in the left corner, the strange sound coming from a...  _thing_ next to him. After listening for a few seconds, Keith realised that the weird sound was music, a bit different from Earth music. This was slower, and it sounded like there were different instruments used to bring forth the sweet tones. Keith made his way toward it, stepping over a few strange machineries that looked similar to the thing the music came from.

He crouched down next to the bunch of green and brown and pushed away a strand of silk-like hair to reveal a peaceful expression on Lance's face. A soft smile tugged at Keith's mouth at the sight and he sat down, pulling his eyes off of Lance's face to study the room. There were weird looking devices made out of some kind of Altean metal and wood-like stuff stored on shelves and against the grey walls. The room was around ten square meters, Keith guessed.

His gaze returned to the sleeping boy next to him, only to find two bright blue eyes staring directly into his. Keith let out a high pitched scream - though he'd never admit it - and tumbled backward, the back of his head hitting the wall with a muffled thud.

"You gave me a fucking heart attack," he complained, as he rubbed his head, wincing when he touched the sore spot. "Ow."

Lance chuckled apologetically. "Sorry." His expression turned serious. "What are you doing here, exactly?" He yawned and stretched. "Time for breakfast yet?"

Keith stared at him, puzzled. "It's midday."

"No, it's not."

"Yes, it is."

"Nu uh. Can't be."

"Yes, it fucking- ugh." Keith shoved the communicator Pidge and Hunk had made for every one of them in Lance's face. The display said 'two o'clock'.

"What? That's impossible." Lance shot up, slamming his head into the shelf above him. "Ow, fuck!" He rubbed the painful spot.

Keith grinned smugly. "Payback."

"Oh, I'll get you for that!" Lance threw himself at Keith, knocking the both of them over. They rolled over a few times, both trying to get on top of the other. When they finally came to a stop, due to the wall they slammed into, Keith was on top, straddling Lance with his legs. He stared at the face beneath him for a couple of seconds before realising the position they were in. He quickly rolled off of the other boy, who was looking at him with an expression he couldn't decipher, a blush creeping on both their faces, though neither of them could see the other's, since they were busy sitting up again, avoiding eye contact at all cost.

"So..." Keith said. "Care to explain why you were sleeping in here instead of in your room?"

Lance's eyes clouded and Keith instantly wanted to take his words back.

"I- I mean, if you want to, don't feel pressured or anything-"

"It's okay," Lance sighed. He went to face Keith, legs crossed. "I, uh, tend to get homesick and I couldn't sleep tonight because of that. I discovered this room a while ago, when I had a nightmare and couldn't get back to sleep. The music reminds me of my family, so I listen to it to help me sleep. We used to play and sing together a lot." Lance smiled at the memory faintly, eyes on Keith, mind kilometers away, on Earth. "I miss them," he whispered, tears threatening to form in his eyes. He looked down at his lap.

Keith's heart ached having to see Lance like this. He slowly placed a hand on Lance's knee, giving him a reassuring squeeze. The boy looked up to him, eyes glistening with unshed tears. He suddenly threw himself at Keith, burying his head in the crook of his neck and clasping his arms around his torso. Keith froze for a second, then relaxed and returned the hug, placing one hand on Lance's back and the other one in his hair. He softly brushed through the silky locks while making soothing sounds. They sat like that for a long time, arms around each other, soaking in each other's presence.

When Lance's sobs finally quieted down, he pulled back just enough to be able to look Keith in the eyes. His cheeks were still wet with tears.

"S-sorry," he said, voice unsteady. "I shouldn't have invaded your personal space like that."

Keith gently stomped him. "Shut up and cuddle me, you moron."

Lance smiled and it felt like pure light and warmth was flowing out of him and Keith was sure he was burning.

 _Fuck,_  he thought.  _I'm in love with Lance._

Lance, aka the boy he was in love with, scooted closer to him and buried his face in Keith's shoulder. His body relaxed and just melted into him. Keith let his chin rest on the other's head, sighing contently, but Lance shot upright, headbutting Keith.

"Ow!" Lance said.

"Ow!" Keith said.

Lance realised what he'd done and started apologising - "Oh shit, fuck, sorry sorry sorry, o god are you okay?" - simultaneously touching the place where he'd accidentally hit Keith. "You touched the spot that'd been hit before so it hurt but it's okay I'm fine are you okay though?"

Keith was touching the underside of his chin, when he felt soft hands replaced his own. He looked up and saw Lance with a very concerned expression on his face and he chuckled.

"It's fine, it didn't hurt that much," he replied.

Lance looked very nervous, like he was about to confess some huge secret. He was fumbling and looking everywhere but at Keith.

"I-" he began, then stopped. "Can I- can I kiss you?"

It took a few seconds before he registered the words, taken aback by the suddenness, and then the penny dropped.

Oh.

_Oh._

Keith's heart filled itself with warmth and light, a feeling of pure bliss and love going through him.

"I, uh, if you want to, though." Lance scratched his neck awkwardly, anxiously awaiting Keith's answer.

"Yeah, of course. I mean, yes," the black haired boy tripped over his words, forgotten how to speak.

He leaned forward, eyes starting to close. He abruptly stopped, mere millimetres away from Lance's lips.

"I, uh, I've never done this before," he admitted with a burning face.

"Me neither." Lance smiled fondly. It was the cutest thing he'd ever seen. "Let's just... try?"

Keith nodded and carefully cupped Lance's face with his right hand. He put his other hand on the back of his head, fingers tangled in the soft, flowy locks of hair.

"This okay?" he asked shyly.

Lance just nodded, a small smile tugging on his mouth. He put both his hands around Keith's face, cradling him. They were surprisingly soft, Keith noticed, blushing, like he seemed to do at every little thing Lance did. God, he was becoming soft.

Oh well, if it meant for him to be able to cuddle Lance all he wanted, he was not going to complain.

Lance leaned in, but just before his lips would've touched Keith's, he stopped. "Um, so, just so you know, I'm kinda asexual?"

Keith was frozen for a moment, then smiled up at him. "Me too."

"Oh. OH. Cool, cool, cool. Cooooooool. That's cool. Yeah. Definitely. Yup."

Keith decided to stop Lance's mindless rambling, "So, you gonna kiss me or what?"

"Oh, yeah. Of course," Lance stumbled over the words, clearly embarrassed, but that faded quickly when he leaned in again, his lips brushing softly over Keith's. It was over in an instant.

It felt amazing.

Keith giggled, a giddy feeling spreading through his chest.

"O. My. God." Lance said in amazement. "You didn't. You just fucking giggled this is the best day of my entire life ah I love you so much."

Keith blinked at those words.

"You- say that again?"

Lance leaned in resting his forehead against Keith's. "Keith Kogane, I love you. So, so much.

Keith's, who could feel his face heating up, buried his face in Lance's shoulder. "I love you too," sounded his muffled voice. When he recovered, he looked up again and said teasingly: "You're so sweet, you actually  _asked_  if you could kiss me."

Lance stomped him on the arm and let out a whine. "Keiiiiiiiiith. It's not my fault my mama raised me well."

"What instrument do you play?" Keith asked quickly, before Lance could have the chance to get sad again.

Said person seemed to be startled by the question, but recovered from it rather rapidly.

"I play the guitar!" he beamed. "I actually found something similar to one in here."

He turned around and began to rummage through the pile behind him, pulling out a big instrument made out of the same Altean metal and wood the other devices were made of.

Lance plucked on the strings, tuning the guitar. He looked up to Keith, who was watching him with interest.

"Would you, uh, would you like me to play you something?" Lance asked.

It took Keith a few moments to process what he had said. When the bomb finally dropped, a shot of love and admiration went through him. Did Lance just actually offer to sing for him?

 _O god, I am gonna die he is too sweet and adorable I can't take it god take me now_ , was what went through his head, but he managed to squawk "yeah sure".

He was rewarded with the most beautiful smile.

Lance strummed the guitar strings with soft, careful strokes. The tones streamed out of the instrument, constructing sweet sounds that tickled Keith's insides and ran down his spine, making him shiver in awe.

And then he began to sing.

"Oh, no

I fell in love with you

And you fell in love with me,

What shall we do?"

The words flowed out of Lance's mouth, a river of sweetness and warmth, wrapping themselves around Keith. 

"Oh, no

What's happened to my heart?

It pitters and it pats two beats apart"

The song was like a lullaby, soothing his invisible wounds.

"Oh, no

There's danger up ahead

So say your prayers we might as well be dead

Oh, no

If we are going to die

I'll let you give me one last kiss goodbye"

The music embraced him and for once, he felt at home.

 "Oh, no

I fell in love with you

And you fell in love with me, 

What shall we do?"

Keith only noticed he'd closed his eyes when Lance had stopped singing, the last notes quivering in the air between them as the music slowly faded away.

He opened them and looked at Lance, who was watching him shyly, an expectant look on his face - which was really fucking adorable. When Keith smiled at him, his face split open in a wide grin, his eyes oceans of blue blue blue and Keith was drowning.

* * *

 

They stayed there for a long time - Keith had no idea how long exactly, it could've been hours or minutes, he didn't care either way. He was with Lance and he was happy, and that's all that mattered - bodies curled around each other, soaking up each other's warmth, taking in each other's scent, exchanging kisses every now and then.

* * *

 

When the alarm blared, Keith and Lance shot up instantly, head butting in their rush. ("watch out, you complete buffoon!" "shut up, mullethead!") The intercom creaked before spitting out Coran's voice:

"Attention, paladins, a huge Galra fleet is heading our way! At best they are only a few doboshesaway! Get into your lions, quickly!"

The intercom shut off.

Keith and Lance locked eyes, blue looking into purple, both filled with determination. They just nodded and bolted out of the room, leaving the faint trail of warmth and happiness behind on Lance's bed.

They made their way to their lions, briefly pausing to put on their armour. Keith turned to separate from Lance to head to Red's hangar when a tug at his wrist willed him to stop. He looked up at Lance in confusion. The latter shuffled awkwardly, eyes locked on the ground.

"Yeah?" Keith's voice seemed to pull him back to consciousness and his head shot up, eyes meeting Keith's.

"I, uh, was wondering what we are now?" His voiced went up at the end of his sentence, making it sound like a question. "Like we're going into battle right now and we don't know if we'll even make it out alive so I thought we should determine if we're like boyfriends and stuff y'know so uh yeah? But we don't have to be if you don't want to though that's totally oka-"

Keith quickly shut him up by planting a kiss on Lance's mouth, smiling against his lips.

"I'd like that."

He left Lance standing there, a faint smile on his face, fingers tracing his lips as to feel the touch of Keith's kiss again.

* * *

Everything was chaos.

They had all managed to get to their lions before the Galra fleet had gotten close enough to shoot, but it was a closecall. The five lions of Voltron flew out of the castle toward the threat, having just enough time to form Voltron before laser beams were aimed at them and they had to pull some weird stunts in order not to get hit.

When the fleet came fully into their sight, they all held their breath for a moment - it was huge. Hundreds, maybe even thousands, of smaller ships and a huge one, with an enormous canon that was aimed at them at the moment.

They made a beeline for the nearest ship, slicing it in half with their sword. The ships around it got the same fate, but there were simpy too many, not taking in account the enormous battleship with the equally enormous canon.

As they dodged another blast, simultaneously slamming into a few ships, Keith suggested they split up.

"We could destroy the smaller ships like this, but we're never gonna defeat that canon from the outside," he stated. "Someone has to go in and destruct it from the inside."

"Keith-" Shiro protested.

"No, Shiro. This is the only way, and you know that."

Shiro opened his mouth again but Keith cut him off. "I get that you're trying to protect us, but we're paladins of Voltron. This is what we're here for: defending the universe. We need to take down that canon. _I_ need to take down that canon."

Shiro looked like he wanted to object, but then sighed and nodded briefly.

"Fine, but you're taking Lance with you. I don't like you going in there on your own, and he's the best backup you can have."

Lance beamed at the praise.

"What about us?" Pidge asked.

"You, Hunk, and me are going to destroy those ships while Lance and Keith infiltrate the battle cruiser. When we're done, we're joining Keith and Lance." He looked all of them in the eye, making sure everyone got the instructions. "Everything clear?"

They all nodded determinedly and split up

* * *

"Lance?" Keith called as he and Red made their way toward the battle cruiser.

"Right behind ya," sounded Lance's voice in his ear. "Lets kick some ass!"

Keith grimaced at that. "Don't get too confident; we haven't even reached the ship yet."

"Aw sweetheart, why notttt?" Lance whined, the nickname making Keith's face flush.

"D-don't call me that! We're on a mission!" he managed to stammer out.

"Sure, darling." A smug grin appeared on Lance's face.

"Lance I swear to  _God-"_

Lance just giggled and Keith urged Red to go faster ("hey, wait for me you asshole!"), a lovesick grin on his face.

* * *

When they reached the battle cruiser, having smashed some smaller ships on the way, their lions landed on the side, nails digging into the metal to secure their position. Lance and Keith exited Blue and Red, activating their jetpacks. They landed with a soft 'clunk' and cut a hole in the side, disappearing into the belly of the beast.

The sound of footsteps echoed through the hallway and they quickly hid in the shadows. A sentry was coming their way, laser gun hoisted on its shoulder. As it made its way through the ship, Keith pressed himself further into the wall - and with that, Lance, since he was standing behind him - afraid of getting caught and not wanting to kill it already in case someone would find the body.

When it had passed through, he let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. He went to look at Lance to decide which way to go, when he noticed said boy's face was as red as Keith's lion.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Y-yeah, 'm fine," Lance stuttered.

Keith raised his eyebrow but didn't comment on his weird behaviour. He checked if there were any guards around, and when he'd made sure there weren't, stepped into the now empty hallway.

He looked back at Lance, whose face was still red for some reason. "I think the control room is this way."

"Yeah," squeaked Lance, voice unusually high. He coughed a few times and when he spoke his voice was back to normal. "Yeah, I think so, too."

They drew their bayards and went down the hall, careful not to make any noise. Every time they heard a guard approach, they hid in the shadows. So far, it had all went well, but they knew that wasn't going to be the case for long. After all, something  _always_  went wrong when the two of them were involved were involved.

They used the map of a former battle ship they'd invaded, similar to this one, hoping it'd lead them to the control room. They turned left and immediately had to duck in order to avoid getting shot by a sentry that was guarding a huge door. Lance acted fast and shot back, hitting it in the chest. 

Keith and Lance locked eyes for a moment and nodded, understanding each other's unspoken words. Lance positioned himself in front of the door so he had a clear view and Keith cut off the arm of the sentry to open the door. As soon as the door slid open, Lance started shooting, killing the first few guards behind it. There were at least ten more, guarding what seemed to be a balcony leading to what Keith guessed was the control room.

He dove in and wiped out two sentries with a few well aimed stabs, gaining a clear view of the balcony. A good fifteen meters under it, a big space with a room with transparant walls in it. The room seemed to be filled with three Galra generals monitoring the canon. Bingo.

"Lance!" he shouted, getting the attention of his teammate and boyfriend. "I'm going in! Cover my back!"

Lance saluted and aimed for another enemy. A shot penetrating the body of a sentry was the last thing Keith saw before he slid underneath another sentry and jumped off of the balcony. He used his jetpack to slow down his fall - he did not wish to fall to his death right now, thank you very much - and landed on the metal floor, the sound echoing slightly through the room, alarming the guards who hadn't noticed the fight fifteen meters above them yet.

Multiple sentries -at least thirty - were already coming for Keith, shotguns ready. He decapitated the first one and plunged his bayard into the belly of another. He managed to dodge a laser beam by letting himself fall to the ground and rolled over to stand up again and swung his sword toward his attacker's face, all in one fluid movement.

He slowly made his way toward the control room, which was around eighty meters away, guarded by even more sentries. It seemed like there was no end to the amount of sentries. He could kill one and two others would immediately take its place.

He fought anyway. He couldn't back out now, they needed to take down the canon, otherwise the castle ship and Voltron would be destroyed, and with that, the entire universe.

Time seemed to stretch and it felt like he was fighting for hours, piles of broken bodies growing and growing.

He had a few seconds to spare, panting heavily, studying the room. There were still plenty of enemies left and he was still fourty or so meters away from the control room. He blinked the sweat out of his eyes, ignoring the way it slid down his back.

He knew there were too many. He was alone, Lance still battling the sentries in the room above him, all of the other paladins out of reach, and even if they came for him, they would be too late. He snickered darkly.

Even if he was going down, he could at least take out as many as he could.

He readied his sword and grimaced before diving into battle.

He swished and ducked and stabbed, taking out several enemies. But they kept coming and coming, like water flows in a river, it just never stopped.

It didn't matter how many he killed, he couldn't win this fight. Keith was fully aware of this. He didn't care. Yes, he could have fled, though he might get shot in the back, his survival chances would be much higher than staying to fight.

But what good would come from that? Fleeing wasn't what he was here for, defending the universe was. And Keith would be damned if he let the universe down. He'd rather die - literally.

So he stayed. He stayed, even though he knew it was hopeless. He stayed and fought till his lungs gave out. The only things he could hear were his own heavy breathing and the sounds of guns being fired off ringing in his ears as he kept slicing through sentries.

He dodged a particularly brutal attack from a huge shotgun and stabbed its owner in the back, rolling out of the way when the robot went down so he wouldn't get crushed, simultaneously slicing another sentry's kneecaps, sending it toppling to the ground.

He could feel the exhaustion even stronger now, a trail of sweat slowly making its way down his back, leaving him shivering in his bodysuit.

He eyed the control room, only fifteen meters away, so close, but not close enough. He gritted his teeth in frustration, drops of sweat dripping in his eyes.

Suddenly, a tall wall of robots loomed in front of him, marching toward where he was standing, a lonely, tiny human, surrounded by the bodies of his enemies. There were at least thirty sentries, their guns all aimed at Keith. He wanted to run forward to meet them and send them into oblivion, but when he tried to do so, he stumbled and his legs almost gave out under him. He tried to raise his sword, but he didn't have the strength. He crumbled, sank to the floor, despair and disappointment singeing through his body. He failed.

Regret suddenly scorched through his body. He regretted that he'd only had so little time with Lance, they hadn't even told the team yet, and now, they never would. There were a thousand kisses he'd never give him, a thousand nights spent cuddling he'd never have, a wedding that never would come, a life together that was never meant to be.

Keith opened his mouth to try to warn Lance, to tell him to get out of here safe, but the only words that came out of his mouth were "Lance... I love you."

Then, the sound of over thirty laser guns starting up drowned out everything and Keith stared into the purple eyes of death.

He closed his eyes, bracing himself for the burning pain that could go through his body any moment now. He prayed to every god out there for Lance to have gotten away safely.

He waited, eyes closed, when he heard multiple shots, all fired within nanoseconds of each other. He flinched at the sound, waiting for it to hit him, but the blow never came. He slowly opened one eye, both of them flying open as soon as he saw the sight before him.

All of the sentries, every single one, were lying on the ground, holes in their chest or missing a limb.

Keith stared at the pile of bodies for a moment, before turning around to look at where the sudden ray of death had come from.

He saw Lance standing on the balcony where Keith had jetpacked off so long ago, laser rifle still glowing slightly. Lance saluted him jokingly and Keith smiled at his boyfriend, silently thanking him, when Lance's eyes suddenly dulled. He dropped his rifle and slowly fell over, revealing a sentry standing behind him, his gun aimed at where Lance's back had been mere seconds ago, the faint buzzing of its weapon piercing Keith's ears. He stood there triumphantly for a moment, before Keith flung his knife at his chest, sending him to the ground.

Keith watched as Lance fell off of the edge, his body hitting the floor with a dull thud.

He didn't notice he was screaming until his voice had grown hoarse.

When Keith saw Lance fall, he went ballistic. He beheaded the nearest sentry, not feeling the exhaustion and heaviness of his limbs that had tied him to the floor moments before, and swung his sword into another's chest. He dug through the line robots that was coming for him, rage reddening his vision. He pushed through to the place where Lance should be. He slashed and stabbed and kicked until he reached Lance's body. He picked up his fallen rifle, which had turned back into the blue bayard. It started to glow a bright blue light and morphed into a sword similar to Keith's, as if it was helping him avenge its owner.

Keith couldn't fly up with Lance without getting shot with all these drones surrounding them, so he moved to stand before Lance's unconscious - at least, he hoped he was unconscious - body, the fire that was burning in his eyes daring the enemy to try and take him away from him.

 _Come here and get me,_ he thought.  _I fucking dare you._

He raised both of his swords and slashed through two approaching sentries, their exoskeletons falling to the ground in two pieces. He turned to another one and teared it apart, the now useless pieces of metal echoing frigidly through the room.

He continued like that, slicing sentries open like he was opening a bag of chips, the two swords dancing a deadly waltz, ripping apart bodies like they'd done this all his life.

He had almost wiped out every single sentry in the room, his rage fuelling him. He wouldn't let anyone get near Lance, even if it was the last thing he did.

And then, he saw him; a Galra officer almost twice his size approaching him, an enormous broadsword in his hands.

Instead of fear, which would have been the rational emotion to feel, Keith only felt determination.

 _Finally,_ he thought, as he balanced on the ball of his feet, a dark grin adorning his face. _A real enemy._

He raised his swords, ready to attack. From the corner of his eye. he saw the gun of a sentry lighting up, meaning he was about to shoot. He lashed out and cut through its waist, then kicked another in the chest, sending it flying against a few other ones.

The Galra officer was close enough to attack him now. He sprung forwards, swords aimed at his opponent. He pretended to come in from the front, but suddenly rolled under his legs to charge in from behind. The Galra quickly whirled around and blocked his attack with his broadsword, then swung it to Keith's side. He managed to jump away, but not before the weapon grazed his side, ripping his suit. A few blots of blood dripped from the cut on the ground. Keith grimaced and charged in even more furiously. He slashed and stabbed and cut, dodged and jumped and ducked, swords moving so fast they became blur. It looked like they were dancing, swords lashing out and pulling back.

Keith kept moving forward, forcing the Galra to stumble backwards in order not to get hit, driving him in a corner. Specks of blood flew around; Keith didn't know whose.

The Galra tried to defend himself, but it was in vain. Keith slammed his shoulder into him and pinned him against the wall with his left arm, a cruel smile on his lips. The sword had already turned back into the blue bayard and he raised his own sword, ready to cut the other's throat. He was about to slice his blade through the purple skin when he heard a soft mumbling behind him.

"Kei- Keith?"

He dropped his swords, the sound of metal clattering on the floor echoing throughout the whole room.

_Lance._

_He was alive._

All of the rage that had Keith burning before was gone now, and he set a step back, relaxing his muscles. In his relief, he didn't notice the Galra raising his sword, readying to kill the annoying human in one swish.

Just as he was about to hit Keith, a laser beam pierced the air and hit him in the chest, causing him to slam into the wall. He didn't stand up again.

After Keith had ensured he was dead, he turned around and spotted Hunk, who had come in the room just in time to save his sorry ass.

From behind Hunk, Pidge and Shiro jumped off of the balcony, using their jetpacks to slow down their fall. They started wiping out the sentries Keith hadn't killed yet. The sound of Hunk's canon being fired off snapped Keith out of his trance. He turned around and started making his way toward where Lance's body should be, not caring about the fight around him anymore, snatching his sword and the blue bayard from the ground in the process. He dodged a laser and kicked the gun out of its owner's hands. He rammed his shoulder into another one and finally arrived in front of Lance. He hadn't noticed he'd gone this far away while fighting the Galra officer. A wave of guilt came over him when he realized he'd left Lance vulnerable for a long time. He allowed himself wallow in guilt for a second, then scolded himself for wasting time.Lance was still alive, though barely, and that's all that mattered. Right now, his top concern was getting him out of here.

He crouched and took Lance in his arms bridal style, careful not to touch his injured back. Keith activated his jetpack and flew up to the balcony. He rushed past Hunk, who was still shooting at the sentries under them, using his jetpack to run faster.

He stepped over lifeless bodies and sentry limbs, ignoring the shooting noises that came from behind him. He hurried through the hallway, to the place where he and Lance had entered the ship.

Red had already opened her mouth and he quickly got into her cockpit and carefully placed Lance on his lap. Without asking to, Red took off, flying back to the castle.

Keith looked at the boy in his lap, wrinkles of worry painting his face. Lance's helmet was cracked where he'd fallen on it. There also was a hole in the back of his armour where he'd been hit with the shotgun. Keith had no idea how much damage it had caused, but it seemed like Lance had passed out. Maybe it was for the better. That way he couldn't feel the pain that must be scorching through his wounded body.

Keith yanked his helmet off and breathed a few times, willing his lungs to calm down. He removed Lance's helmet too, it was useless now anyway.

He traced the freckles that formed small constellations on the cooling skin of Lance's nose and cheeks. Keith's hand moved to his hair and he combed his fingers through the soft locks, just like he'd done onlyan hour ago, before everything went to hell. He hadn't expected the next time to go like this.

He hoisted Lance up ahainst his chest, curling up around him, like he was protecting him with his own body, and finally allowed himself to cry.

"Please stay," he whispered, tears threatening to choke him. "Don't leave me alone. Not you, too."

They stayed like that, Keith silently sobbing into Lance's chest, Lance still unconscious, until Red came to a stop in the hangar and Red opened her mouth to let them out. Keith picked Lance up again and exited his lion. He brought him to the healing pods, where Coran was waiting for them. He had already prepared a healing pod and together they placed Lance in it.

Keith watched as the pod closed, the adrenaline slowly fading away.

A hand landed on his shoulder and he looked up into Coran's kind eyes. The older man smiled at him.

"Your mate will be okay, young paladin. The healing pod will do its work, I can assure you." He turned away. "I am going to check on the princess now."

"Thanks, Coran." Keith watched him walk out of the room, the automatic doors whizzing as they closed behind him.

He was alone now.

He placed his hand on the glass in front of Lance's face and pretended he could touch him. He let his forehead rest against the cool glass, tears slowly sliding down his cheeks. 

_Come back to me. You're all I have left._

He knew he should make sure the others were okay, but his helmet was still in Red and he didn't want to leave Lance alone, so he opted for sitting down in front of the pod, eyes on the stirless body inside, waiting for it to open and give him his Lance back.

* * *

Keith didn't know how long he'd been sitting in front of Lance's pod when Shiro came into the room announcing they had won the battle, not that he cared, the only thing on his mind right now was Lance.

Shiro crouched down next to him. "Ssh, it's okay, he'll be okay," he comforted as he pulled Keith into a tight embrace. Keith held on tight, fingers curling up into fists in the back of Shiro's shirt.

"But what if he won't? What if he- if he-" Keith choked on his tears and words, unable to say them out loud and admit his worst fear.

So he didn't. He cried until he had no more tears to be shed and his eyes were burning. Along with the tears, his energy drained and he was starting to get tired. He let go of Shiro and slid to the ground, laying down. Shiro put his hand on Keith's shoulder and gave him a reassuring squeeze. He then walked out of the room to return a few minutes later, blanket in his hands. He put it over Keith, who'd already fallen asleep, exhausted as he was.

Shiro smiled at his little brother and left, the door sliding shut with a hiss, and the castle was silent again.

* * *

As soon as the healing pod slid open, Hunk rushed forward to catch Lance, who came tumbling out of it. After he'd steadied him, he hugged him with so much force that Lance squealed in pain. Hunk quickly let go, thoroughly apologising for squeezing his still bruised rib case.

"Wha- what happened?" Lance questioned, vision still blurry from the time he'd been in there. He eyed Keith, sound asleep on the floor in front of the pod, still wearing his armour. "Why is Keith sleeping on the floor-" He noticed the white healing suit hugging his body. "I- was I in a healing pod? Why don't I remember a thing?" He anxiously eyed Hunk, demanding answers

"You got shot and fell off of the balcony you were standing on. You have a concussion, buddy," his best friend told him. "and a few broken ribs and some nasty burns."

Lance stared at him with a blank expression.

Hunk explained: "You and Keith were going to the battle cruiser to take down the canon while Pidge, Shiro and I were supposed to destroy the smaller ships and help you guys when we were done. After we did that, we went to the battle cruiser, but we were discovered by some guards before we reached you so we had to fight them first." Hunk paused for a moment and sniffled. "After we defeated them we went your way, just in time to see you getting shot in the back, but we were still too far away to do anything." Hunk started tearing up. "I couldn't do anything, Lance, you could've  _died_. You almost  _did die_. I'm- I'm the worst best friend ever."

"Shh, big guy, it's okay." Lance scooped him up in a hug. "It was not your fault, and besides I'm alive, aren't I? See?"

He spread his arms, as if to show Hunk he was very much alive, but winced because he almost reopened the wound on his back.

Suddenly, a screech sounded behind him and something bumped into Lance. He stumbled but managed to stay on his feet. He looked down and saw Pidge clinging to his side, full on sobbing.

"Hey, gremlin." He smiled down at her and got a stomp in return, though it wasn't hard enough to actually hurt.

"Don't ever do that again, you hear me, idiot?" she scolded him, but there was no real anger in her voice. "I've already lost one brother, I can't afford to lose you too."

"Okay, okay, I promise." He ruffled her hair lovingly.

Meanwhile, being woken up because of all the commotion, Keith's eyes fluttered open. He was disorientated for a second -  _why am I on the floor? -_  but then everything came back and he shot upright. He immediately spotted Lance and scrambled to his feet, blanket falling off his shoulders. He rushed to Lance and tackled him with a hug, sending the both of them to the floor.

Pidge, who'd let go of Lance when she'd noticed Keith, gestured for Hunk to get out of the room. They passed Shiro and Allura, who were about to check on Lance and she pulled them with, too. When they looked at her questioningly, she whispered "Let him have his time with his boyfriend," and they exchanged a look and left the two lovebirds alone.

Said lovebirds were on their knees on the floor now, still wrapped up in a hug. When Keith finally pulled back, he didn't go far, letting his forehead rest against Lance's, noses touching. His hand cupped his boyfriend's face, thumb stroking his cheek.

"Hey," Lance said softly. Keith began to tear up at the sound of his voice again. He hadn't thought he'd ever hear it again. Lance took him in his arms again and rubbed his back. "Hey, it's okay. I'm okay."

"I almost lost you," he whispered. "I only had you for a few hours and then I almost lost you."

"Shh," Lance continued to make soothing sounds until Keith had stopped shaking. He then pulled back to look him in the eye. "I'm here and I'm not going anywhere, okay?"

Keith nodded and scooted closer to lean against his boyfriend, but he winced because of a sharp pain in his side.

"What's wrong? Are you injured?" Lance asked when Keith hissed in pain.

"I fought a Galra general and got stabbed a few times, nothing major," Keith brushed it off.

" _Nothing major?_ Your suit is ripped in multiple places and you're bleeding!"

"Yeah, I noticed that, too."

Lance gave him a stern look and he sighed. "Fine. I'll take care of it. But I'm  _not_ going into a healing pod." He crossed his arms and looked at Lance rebelliously.

Lance chuckled and ruffled his hair, earning an annoyed "hey!" from his boyfriend. "Come on, I'll patch you up." He stood up and pulled him to his feet. They made a stop to change into their normal clothes and then made their way to Lance's room.

"Why are we going to your bedroom?" Keith asked. Lance didn't reply and instead walked over to a container and pulled out some bandages and a blue tube.

He gestured for Keith to sit on the bed. "Take off your shirt."

"What?"

"I can't treat your wounds while you're still wearing your shirt, dumbass," Lance replied.

Keith huffed but did as he said anyway.

Lance went to sit behind him and started applying the contents of the tube, a yellow cream, on Keith's injuries with soft, careful fingers. Keith sighed and the tension that had originally stiffened his muscles released as he leaned into the touch. When Lance was done, he used the bandages to make the bleeding stop. He put the tube on his nightstand and sat with his back against the wall. He pulled Keith in his lap and let his head rest on his shoulder. Keith grabbed his arms and put them around him, his thumb stroking lazy circles on his boyfriend's hand.

"You better remember this bonding moment." Keith said grumpily, fondness shining through the annoyance in his voice.

Lance laughed and placed a kiss on his cheek. "Oh, believe me, I will."

**Author's Note:**

> Fun fact: the original name for this fic was "stop giving me heart attacks you fucking asshole" but I decided I wanted something more serious so I chose this one instead
> 
> The "i love you's" were a bit rushed but eh who cares
> 
> I hope you enjoyed :)
> 
> PS. At least one of them is ace in every single fic, mentioned or not (though I try to always mention it)
> 
> PPS. The song Lance sang is called Oh No! by Monday Gledhill
> 
> My writing & art Tumblr: demiromantic-disaster  
> Fandom side blog: thnks-fr-th-klnc


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